Sax, Wind & Funk Medley

Earth, Wind & Fire', 'Blood, Sweat & Tears and 'Weather Report' - these three jazz-rock bands celebrated their greatest successes in the 1970s, and all three groups each had a big hit that every listener still recognizes today. These three funk-style superhits 'September', 'Spinning Wheel' and 'Birdland' are combined here in an energetic medley. (The title of the medley, 'Sax, Wind & Funk', of course alludes to the triple list in the first two band names mentioned.)

In rock and pop music, which is strongly dominated by vocals and electronic instruments, the saxophone stands out as the wind instrument that is still used most frequently. For jazz, on the other hand, the saxophone is regarded as a symbol of identification par excellence. So it was relatively obvious for the arranger Stefan Schwalgin to give the five-part saxophone setting (A, A, T, T, B) of the wind orchestra a solo role as part of a jazz-rock compilation, especially since the sound of the saxophone comes closest to human singing due to the position and modulation ability of the tone.

The medley SAX, WIND & FUNK impresses with ingenuity on a small scale and consistency on a large scale. The musical language of the original models is transferred to the instrumentation form of the wind orchestra without stylistic alienation. The medley can be played from a minimum of three soloists (A, A, T), with slight reductions a performance with four saxophones (A, A, T, B) is also possible.